What we wish we knew when we started surfing

Choose the Right Equipment for Your Level

Like many beginner surfers, when we started, we wanted to ride the “cool” small shortboards we saw in the movies. We had no idea just how our equipment could play a role in our ability to progress.

Surfing is not like other sports. It’s not about getting a slight edge with a new racquet or golf club. Your choice of equipment can determine if you end up catching waves and surfing or not surfing anything at all and get discouraged.

By choosing a bigger surfboard, you float more. This means your body comes out of the water so much more on a big board. When you paddle, you glide with far less drag than when most of your body is underwater on a small board. More paddle speed means you can paddle out and catch waves with a lot more ease.

You’ll also gain a lot more stability when trying to stand up. Imagine yourself trying to stand up on a tiny kayak compared to a big boat. Of course, a big boat is more stable. Surfboards work the same way.

On a small board, as soon as your foot is slightly off-center, you lose balance. A bigger board is much more forgiving, and you’ll be able to cruise along even if you aren’t perfectly positioned.

Generally speaking, bigger surfboards are better to learn on, but there’s more to it than just its overall size. Variables like a surfer’s weight, the typical conditions they surf in, their experience, and paddling skills should be considered when choosing equipment. 

Learn how to find Good Waves

Surfing is about more than just paddling out and catching waves; it’s about understanding the ocean. When we started surfing, we didn’t know the difference between onshore and offshore winds, even months after getting into the sport, because no one told us.

If you don’t know the difference, it’s quite simple! Onshore winds mean that the wind comes from the ocean to the beach and offshore means that it comes from the beach and moves toward the ocean.

These winds make a massive difference in the quality of the surf conditions. Imagine strong onshore winds pushing behind the waves, making them crumble before they can even take shape. This creates very messy conditions that are hard to surf compared to clean conditions when there’s no wind or when it’s offshore. This is just one example, but when we started, we weren’t aware of many other elements that affect surfing conditions, like tides, bottom contours, swell, and swell direction.

If we could go back, we would definitely dig a lot deeper. We would learn how to read surf forecasts and learn what conditions work best for the spots we surfed most by asking local surfer friends, for example. By knowing these things sooner, we would have been much better at finding good waves for our level and would have had even more fun.

Learn the Foundations First

Surfing is a very unique sport. It is both an art and a super technical sport. Back in the day, our first impression was that expert surfers looked cool and relaxed, effortlessly flowing through different wave sections.

We only learned later on that these surfers weren’t just “going with the flow” and realized just how technical surfing really was and the time it takes to learn. That’s why our third tip is to learn the foundations first.

There are many techniques to learn, and these techniques often unlock certain elements in your surfing and build on each other. For example, once you learn how to catch unbroken waves consistently, you can add angling techniques to take off to the left or right.

Once you have that angling skill, it really opens your surfing horizon. You start making more sections, which lets you start taking off deeper, which helps you hold your place in the lineup, which generally helps you catch more waves.

More waves mean more opportunities to practice, and that’s when you start unlocking other skills like speed generation. It’s like a domino effect: mastering the basics makes everything else click into place. When you build solid foundations, it becomes easier and faster to acquire the following skills.

If you want to know more about the foundations you need at your specific level, check out the link to our coaching board. It’s a tool we developed for our students. It will give you an overview of the physical and mental skills you should try to acquire at your specific level.

See yourself surfing on video & get feedback

One of the things we realized too late is that there was a big gap between how we thought we surfed and how we surfed in reality. Surfers very rarely have a clear idea of how their surfing looks until they see it on video.

Everything happens really quickly when surfing a wave. Watching your videos will help you become aware of where you’re truly at and notice your bad habits. It will probably give you a weird feeling, like hearing your voice for the first time… But it’s necessary.

Imagine trying to learn how to sing well without ever hearing yourself. That would be difficult.

If you dream of surfing with style and grace, get your surfing filmed as soon as possible. Ideally, watch your videos with an experienced surfer who can give you valuable insight. You can also compare your surfing footage with the ones of other surfers you like, by using a split screen. This can allow you to isolate areas you need to improve.

Seeing yourself surfing helps you visualize yourself surfing. You can feel it when you go back in the water; you feel more conscious of your movements and decisions. This can fuel your progression, give you new objectives, and motivate you even more to improve.

Since we discovered the importance of this in our progression, we’ve taken every opportunity to get footage of our surfing. Seeing yourself surfing just 2 or 3 times per year would be a good place to start.

Practice with Focus

Once you see yourself on video and hopefully get feedback, you need to do something about it! We are still guilty of making this mistake; We often jump in the water, clueless about what we want to practice.

Focusing during your practice is a crucial ingredient to faster progression. It’s not just about how many hours you spend in the water; it’s about how many focused hours you spend practicing.

You need to get in the habit of knowing exactly what to focus on before you jump in the water. You want to constantly know the 2 or 3 key things you need to focus on.

We understand that it can be hard to be totally focused for an entire hour or more. And one of the enjoyable things about surfing is to let go and not think too much.

That’s why we recommend timing your focused sessions. For example, you can tell yourself:

For the next 20 minutes, I will focus on looking where I want to go during my take-offs instead of looking down at my surfboard.

When we get more advanced technical coaching, we normally get out of the water every 20 minutes to reassess techniques with our coach. In our experience, this helps us stay focused by keeping things fresh in our minds.

Check out our video breakdown about the importance of practice. Is it All About Practice to Learn to Surf Better?